On the day of Trump's visit to Japan, the Takashi-Saami cabinet finally received a call from China. However, China did not send a congratulatory message, but gave Japan a "precautionary shot."
On October 28th, Yokosuka Military Port in Tokyo Bay, Japan was very lively-Trump just landed on Air Force One, and took sanae takaichi onto the aircraft carrier George Washington. The two stood next to the missile launcher and took a group photo. The camera was full of the posture of "the US-Japan alliance is unbreakable".
On the same day, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke by telephone with Japanese Foreign Minister Momoi Ming. This is also the first time Japan’s new cabinet members have had high-level diplomatic interactions with China eight days after he was elected prime minister.
To understand the amount of this phone call, we must first see what Trump and the high-market early morning were playing that day.
On the surface, it was a “routine meeting”, and in reality it was a “military bondage”. The two finalized the upgrade plan of Yokosuka base on the aircraft carrier, and also declared to strengthen the "US-Japan alliance".
"Security cooperation" was repeatedly mentioned in the US-Japan meeting. But where are the boundaries of cooperation? Foreign Minister Wang Yi made it very clear on the phone “History and Taiwan issues are the basis of China-Japan relations, and we hope that the Japanese side will maintain this political basis.”
Speaking of this, Foreign Minister Wang Yi further pointed out that, It is hoped that the new Japanese cabinet will be able to take the "first step" in its exchanges with China and shut down the "first button" in China-Japan relations.
This is both a promise for the relations between China and Japan and a advice to the Japanese side.
Japanese Foreign Minister Mao Zedong promised in the phone. China is an important neighbor to Japan, and said the prime minister attaches great importance to relations with China, does not intend to disconnect with the Chinese side, and hopes to properly deal with bilateral differences.
Compared with Takashi Saami's past statements, the commitments made by Japan's new cabinet are generally relatively positive, but these commitments cannot only be left in words, but must also be implemented into concrete actions.
The first thing Japan has to do is two things: The first is “Don’t take China as a hypothetical enemy”; the second red line is “The Taiwan issue cannot be touched.”
This time, Trump visited Japan, although he did not specifically mention the Taiwan issue, but the United States and Japan wrote in the joint statement that it was "focused on the peace and stability of the Taiwan Sea", such a practice of "washing the edge" that China's mainland has seen in the eye.
This "vaccination" is to warn Japan in advance: Don't step on this red line, you will have to pay a price if you step on it.
What Japan and China can't get rid of is economic and trade exchanges.
Toshiichi Motegi emphasized on the phone that Japan hopes to strengthen mutually beneficial cooperation with China and promote the construction of a stable Japan-China strategic and mutually beneficial relationship.
There is a reality in this: Although Japan cannot refuse to cooperate with the United States' Indo-Pacific strategy, it cannot break its economic ties with China.
If Japan follows the United States in "decoupling China", Japan's own enterprises will be damaged first. A few months ago, the Japanese economic community sent a delegation to China to discuss with China about expanding auto parts cooperation because it was afraid that "decoupling" would affect business.
If you look at the entire Asia-Pacific region, you will find that this phone call is not only a "reminder", but also a "sobering agent" of the Asia-Pacific pattern.
Trump's visit to Japan, in fact, wanted to tie Japan into the "anti-China small circle", while allowing Japan to spend more money to buy American weapons, while making Japan a "horseman" in the "quarter-party security dialogue".
But the U.S. calculator is fine, and Japan has its own 99: want to use the support of the U.S. to expand its army and get rid of the restraints of the post-war system.
However, this phone call from the Chinese side just broke this illusion of "each has its own ghosts".
The "precaution" given by Foreign Minister Wang Yi was to remind the United States and Japan: Asia-Pacific is not the “background” of the United States, nor is it the “testfield” for Japan’s military expansion.
This requires cooperation, not confrontation; it requires a face-to-face look at history, not to avoid responsibility.
In general, this phone call from China actually expressed the heartfelt words for many Asia-Pacific countries-- Don't be led by the nose by the United States, and find out where your real interests lie.
For the government, the next choice is crucial: to continue to follow the American show muscles, or go back and talk about cooperation with China?
The needle "prevention needle" has been hit down, and how it works, depends on the next action of the Japanese side.